The virus was simply a form of passing cold, but now it is becoming a weapon that threatens humans by killing many people. Now the whole world is afraid, because of the Corona virus (Corona 19), which began in Wuhan of China in December 2019. In many parts of the world, the number of Corona-related patients is increasing exponentially, and the deaths from Corona is also on the rise. Under these circumstances, the world is making every effort to develop a Corona 19 vaccine, but it is still in the development stage, so the aftermath of the virus is expected to continue. Let's find out more about Corona 19 and see the best measures to prevent the spread of Corona 19.

 What is the coronavirus?

 The coronavirus infection-19 is a virus that broke out first in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, spread throughout China and around the world, and it is a new type of respiratory infection disease. Coronavirus infection-19 (Corona 19) is transmitted when droplets from an infected person are infiltrated into the respiratory system or mucous membrane of the eyes, nose, and mouth. The normal distance for these mucous membranes to be infected by these droplet is known to be two meters. If a person is infected with corona 19, the person will go through an estimated incubation period of 2 to 14 days. After that, the infected person will have a fever of at least 37.5 degrees, respiratory symptoms such as coughing or difficulty breathing, and pneumonia, and there are rare cases of an asymptotic infection. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the average fatality rate is around 3%.

 According to statistics from the Central Anti-Disaster Headquarters, as of May 25, 2020, the definite diagnosis toll from Corona 19 is 5,248,227 infections and the dead toll is 341,290 in the world. In the United States, the country with the largest number of infections in the world, 1,618,948 people have been infected with Corona 19 and 96,983 people have died, so the fatality rate is around 6 percent. There are many people infected with the virus in Russia (335,882 infections and 3,388 deaths); Britain (257,154 infections and 36,675 deaths) Spain (235,290 infections and 28,678 deaths). In Spain, after the occurrence of Corona 19, there was an incident in which nursing home staff left and elderly people were unattended. So more than 100 elderly people in nursing homes were infected with Corona 19 and 10 of them died. Most recently, Africa has also had a rise in confirmed Corona 19 cases, where there are 71,709 infections 1,646 deaths as of May 25, 2020. The spread of the Corona 19 in Africa has made the hunger problem even more serious. In addition, concerns have been raised that malaria may be having a resurgence due to difficulties in providing medical supplies.

 The Corona19 originated in China and the world is suffering from China's insufficient action. Let's find out the background of the expansion of Corona19 and see the world's response about China.

China and Corona 19

 Corona 19 was first discovered in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China in December 2019. The first death, of a 61-year-old man, occurred on January 10, 2020. As of January 18, the beginning of China's biggest holiday (the Lunar New Year that begins the spring season), confirmed cases spread beyond Hubei Province to Beijing, Guangdong, and Shanghai. After the travels for the Chinese New Year, the number of infected people began to increase rapidly. Additionally, on January 13th and 15th, confirmed cases occurred in Thailand and Japan, so the contagion had spread to other countries beyond China. On January 28, 2020, China's health authorities officially announced that the new Corona 19 begin in the Huan Fisheries Market in Wuhan, China. Merchants in the Huan Fisheries Market in Wuhan, China, bred, butchered, and sold a total of 112 species of wild animals on a large scale, and the bats that were sold there became the source of the problem. Chinese researchers have concluded that bats were the source of the new corona 19 infections, with research showing that 'the new corona virus infections' and 'the virus in the bodies of the bats to matches 96%. According to a press release by the Chinese authorities, as of May 16, 2020, the number of Corona 19 infected people in China was 8,2941 and the death toll was 4,633, leading to a death rate of 5.6%.

 The virus spread rapidly in China and around the world because the Chinese government concealed and hid the exact number of infected people and the information about the outbreak situation when they were given official announcements in the early stages of corona 19. According to a February 16, 2020 report by the British daily Mirror, experts claim that Corona 19 was leaked from a government-affiliated virus research center located 32 kilometers away from Wuhan, China, so the cause of Corona 19 was not the Huan Fisheries Market in Wuhan. According to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) on February 23, 2020, twelve research teams, including the Guangzhou-based Chinese Academy of Sciences, analyzed DNA and said that the origin of the Corona 19 virus may be from somewhere else other than the Huan Fisheries Market. There is a lot of controversy about the Corona 19 origin, while Chinese authorities are blocking and concealing this information. German prime minister Angela Merkel insists that "Everyone in the world will be better if China becomes more transparent about the origin of the virus”. But Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zaorizen said, "They are trying to shift the virus responsibility to China, making rumors of a leak about Corona 19 virus at the Wuhan Virus Research Institute.”

  Since the Corona 19 situation started in China, the virus has spread around the world, and the damage is increasing. In addition, there is economic damage to the nation, to businesses, and individuals beyond the problem of disease.

Damage from Corona 19

 First, there are cruise-related damages. An 80-years-old Hong Kong man appeared to the first confirmed infected person in the large cruise ‘Diamond Princess’ from Yokohama, Japan, on January 25, 2020, showing that Corona 19 infections had spread. The Japanese authorities, however, ordered that the cruise ship must anchor off the coast of Yokohama Port without anybody disembarking. So, the operation of quarantine stared in the cruise ship because of worry about the spread of Corona 19 on the Japanese mainland. Cruise ships are enclosed and air is circulated through the vents, so these quarantine measures increase the risk of infection. So, there was criticism that all passengers on board should disembark and be examined for infection, regardless of the existence of symptoms. Nevertheless, the Japanese government stuck to the policy, resulting in a total of 705 people being infected on the ship, six of whom died. This led to the cancellation of the operation of cruise ships worldwide, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S.(CDC) imposed a restraining order on May 12, 2020 that bans cruise ships from the U.S. Bloomberg reported that 124 cruise ships were still on the U.S. coast as of May 11, but crew members of various nationalities were unable to get off the ship because of the isolation problem about entry into and departure from the country. They also report that more than 90,000 crew members have been " imprisoned" in the ship for two months. Many crew members are victims of extreme choices.

 Second, there is an international economic loss. The world's economy is affected by Corona 19, and The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts the world's economic growth rate well be minus three percent in 2020 in 'World Economic Outlook Report’. By each country, the U.S. economic growth rate for this year will be minus5.9 percent, Japan will be minus 5.2 percent and the eurozone will be minus 7.5 percent. In this way, many countries around the world are facing economic crises, and Cambodia as a prime example. Key industries that support Cambodia's economy including tourism and clothing manufacturing, are actually collapsing due to Corona 19. The tourism industry, which accounts for one-third of Cambodia's total GDP, is suffering greatly from the disappearance of tourists. According to Cambodia's Civil Aviation Office, passengers arriving in Cambodia decreased by more than 90 percent in April 2020 when compared to the same time in 2019. Also, the ticket sales at Angkor Wat Temple, the largest tourist destination of Cambodia, decreased 99.5 percent. In the Cambodian clothing manufacturing industry, the clothing industry factories account for 65% of the 1,695 factories registered in Cambodia on 2018. Also, the clothing industry produced about 70% of Cambodia's exports, and provided more than 700,000 jobs. But due to the virus, imports of raw materials from China have declined, and Western brands have canceled manufacturing orders, so exports have decreased by 60 percent compared to 2019. In early May 2020, Cambodian media reported “More than 180 clothing factories have shut down. In addition, up to 150,000 workers could lose their jobs because about 60 factories are considering shutting down operations.”

 Lastly, many companies are undergoing restructuring. Because of the characteristics of the sharing economy in which multiple people share houses and cars conflicts with the guidelines for the control of Corona 19 that demands for the suppression of people's face-to-face contact, the sharing economy is falling. Airbnb, a shared accommodation platform in U.S., will dismiss 1,900 employees, because of the aftermath of Corona 19. This represents a massive 25 percent restructuring of its workforce. According to the Financial Times on May 5, 2020, Airbnb Chief Executive Brian Chesky said, "We will dismiss 1,900 of the 7,500 employees worldwide as early as next week.” He also worries that sales in 2020 will be less than half those in 2019. Car-sharing companies such as Uber and Lift have the same situation. Uber announce that they will lay off 5,400 employees, 20 percent of its workforce, and is actually laying off 3,700 full-time employees. Lift dismissed 982 employees, 17 percent of its employees, in April 2020 and additional imposed unpaid leave to 288 employees. Corona 19 is particularly damaging to companies in the sharing economy, which is undergoing restructuring measures such as stopping hiring of new employees and cutting the monthly pay of executive to reduce overhead.

 Although the world is suffering a lot of damage due to Corona 19, there are many countries that avoid a lot of damage with excellent preventative measures against epidemics. Let's find out the best quarantine model countries and the quarantine system they used.

Corona 19 quarantine of world

 Frist, the best quarantine model country is Taiwan. As of May 16, 2020, Taiwan, recognized as the world's top of best quarantine model country, has had a total of 440 infected people and 7 deaths. The Taiwanese government urgently prepared and implemented urgent measures against Corona 19 when the Chinese government officially notified the WHO of the outbreak of Corona 19 in Wuhan, Hubei Province, on December 31, 2019. Accordingly, on the same day, the Taiwanese government began quarantine inspections of aircraft departing from Wuhan, and then the Taiwanese government sent virus experts to Wuhan and conducted independent investigation. Also, the Taiwanese government was the first in the world to ban entry of people from Wuhan on January 23, 2020, and stopped its citizens from traveling to China on January 25.

 The Taiwanese government imposed an export ban of medical mask (N95) during the month following Jan. 24, a day after the Chinese government sealed off Wuhan. In this way the government preemptively blocked the masks and stockpiled medical supplies for use in Taiwan from getting out of Taiwan into China. Also, the Taiwanese government implemented a "mask real-name system" from February 1, 2020 to prevent mask chaos. The "mask Real-name system" is one in which each person can only buy three mask per day at designated pharmacies for $6,000 (240 won). The government also requested manufacturers to operate factories around the clock to provide enough masks for the public. Also, they quickly provided 200 million dollars (about 8.1 billion won) to expand production lines, and mobilized military and reserve forces to add more workers.

 On March 22, 2020, the Taiwanese government introduced a mobile phone location tracking system called 'electronic fence' that manages self-isolated patients. If the mobile phone location of the self-isolator is more than a certain distance away from their address or if the phone signal is not detected for more than 15 minutes, the local government officials or police will get an alarm, and contact or visit the address within 15 minutes. Also, self-isolators are confirmed by direct calls twice a day for to confirm if they leave their cell phones at home. The Taiwanese government also strengthened management of self-isolating people. So, if about a breakaway is uncovered, they are fined $4500 (about 185,000 won) for violation of compulsory isolation.

 Vietnam is also an excellent quarantine model country, and as of May 16, 2020, the number of corona 19 infections is 313, and the number of deaths is zero. The Vietnamese government implemented a shutdown system from April 1 to April 20, 2020 to follow the strong 'social distance system'. The shutdown system of Vietnam is characterized by full control system that is tighter than other countries' shutdown systems. Since April 1, local governments have strictly restricted the movement of people between regions, with 'the suspension all public transportation' and 'the isolation of people from the Corona 19 outbreak area for 14 days'. Also, the government shut down most commercial shops and forced social economic activities to be suspended. When the shutdown system lifted on April 21, Taiwan's economic activities begin again. Although there will be economic damage, it has been recognized as an excellent country for prevention of epidemics, recording 0 infected person of Corona 19 from April 17-23.

 As of May 17, 2020, Finland had 6,347 infected people and 298 deaths, but Finland had fewer Corona 19 infections than other countries in Europe. Because of the unique 'Prepper spirit' culture, Finland could prevent a mask chaos. Prepper is a culture that prepares for the crisis, thinking that a disaster or accident that will destroy the world may come soon. As the Corona 19 spread to countries around the world, the Finnish government began to open supply lines of medical equipment that has been prepared for emergencies since World War II. Professor Magnus Harkenstad of the Norwegian Institute of Military said, "Finland, which has the greatest sense of crisis response among Nordic countries, has always been prepared for a catastrophic event like World War III". In March 2020, Finland's Ministry of Social Health ordered stockpiles of masks to be sent to hospitals across the country. During the war of hoarding daily necessities in other countries of Europe, Finland had abundant reserves of masks, medical equipment, crops, and military supplies, so there is no civil war of hoarding in Finland.

 Korea, which is geographically close to China, was also greatly affected by Corona 19. However, Korea, which is an excellent country in prevention of epidemics, is also working hard to prevent the virus by using various quarantine technologies. Let's take a look at the situation of Corona 19 in our country and its quarantine techniques.

Corona 19 in Korea

 A 35-year-old Chinese woman who arrived at Incheon International Airport from Wuhan, China on January 20, 2020 was confirmed as the first Corona 19 case in Korea. After the release of the first confirmed patient, the number of confirmed patients remained under 30 until February 17, 2020. However, on February 18, a 60-year-old woman living in Daegu became the 31st confirmed case and the super transmitter. The cases of local (New world church that is pseudo-religion, residential area (Daegu-Gyeongbuk), hospital, etc.) infections associated with this patient increased exponentially. The first death of Corona 19 occurred at Deanam hospital in Cheongdo, North Gyeongsang Province on February, 19. Also, a mass infection occurred at the Guro call center on March 11, followed by an influx of foreign students. The number of confirmed cases has been on the decline since April 9, the number of new confirmed cases dropped to two on May 6, when the government changed the trend from social distance to living distance. However, the number of confirmed cases increased again as the mass infection triggered by the visit of the Yongin 66th confirmed case (male in his 20s) to Itaewon on May 6, 2020. As of May 25, 2020, Korea has recorded 1,1206 person infected with Corona 19 and 267 deaths, with a fatality rate of 2.38%. At the time of this writing, 10,226 people have been released from quarantine and 713 patients are being quarantined.

 One of the principles of the response to Corona 19 in the Korea government is transparency. The government has made public the movements of confirmed patients in detail since the beginning of the Corona 19 outbreak, and some of the personal information of confirmed patients, including gender, family name, occupation, nationality, and religion, are being disclosed. So, the disclosure of such information may lead to violation of information rights and privacy. The details of the confirmed patients and their movements are being exposed in too much detail. So, many people have the groundless accusations, speculations, and hate speech against certain confirmed patients, and some say that it is scarier to reveal their movements than to be infected by corona 19. Also, the government is collecting location information through card usage records, transportation card usage records, CCTV video records, and communication records to identify those who had contact with the confirmed patients. People complain that the government seems to be monitoring their lives. As the controversy about human rights violations grows, on March 26, 2020, the Human Rights Love Movement, a human rights group argued, "We need to create a system that can balance the protection of human rights of privacy while responding to urgent health and medical needs."

 Since February 2020, the country has implemented a "drive-through center" system for diagnosis of Corona 19. A drive-through center means a sites for testing coronavirus where people can safely be examined, have samples collected, and have the vehicle disinfected while inspector is in the car. Originally, 'drive through' is a term used in fast food chain and refers to a method designed to allow consumers to order hamburgers or drinks while in a car. The drive-through system, designed in this way, minimizes contact with patients, so in sample collection the driver, who is in the car, slightly lowers the window and the process of the application is done. In the case of the inspection method, the medical team puts their hands through a window gap, inserts a long swab to the visitor's mouth or nose to collect samples, and the test takes about 10 minutes. In our country, drive-through centers started at Chilgok Kyungpook National University Hospital in North Gyeongsang Province on February 2020 when the number of Corona 19 confirmed cases soared, these centers have been operated nationwide. So, the number of Corona 19 test per day increased dramatically. Germany, the U.K., and the U.S., which have been seeing an increasing number of Corona 19 confirmed patients, have introduced and implemented the Korean-style drive-through mobile clinics.

 The world is suffering immensely from the Corona 19. The world cannot avoid the economic and cultural damage of the country as well as the disease problems caused by the virus. Inha University Students are also suffering direct damage by not being allowed to take offline classes. As for this Corona19, we hope that there will be a day when everything will recover as soon as possible, with the world working on the best quarantine and vaccine development. We hope that we will return to the active and happy society before the outbreak of Corona 19 and become a global village of peace.

박아리엘  parkariel2@gmail.com

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